Dream My Beloved
by twilightaddict13
Summary: Bella gets a job at the Cullen Kingdom where she experiences a series of events. Some serendipitious some unfortunate. She meets another servant there named Edward Mason and his brother Emmett. all Cullens are vampires the story gets better I promise!
1. Intro

**Preface**

Bella's parents were very poor. Her father works in the markets. Her mother is a nanny for a mid-class family. Bella doesn't work because she takes care of the house and often helps her mother at work.

Bella's mother comes down with a great illness and does not have the health to even get out of bed. Her and her father must take care of Bella's mother, but a doctor is very much needed. Unfortunately, they can't afford one.

While her father stays behind and watches her mother, Bella goes out in search of a job. She knows serving at a kingdom would pay the most, so she focuses her attention on those. There are three kingdoms: The Black Kingdom ruled by Billy Black in the South, The Newton Kingdom ruled by Michael Newton I in the East, and The Cullen Kingdom ruled by Carlisle Cullen in the North.

She starts at the Cullen Kingdom. She was interviewed by Carlisle and his wife Esme. They were a little apprehensive about hiring a girl who was only 15, but many hours of questioning and demonstrations they decided to hire her. She was delighted to have found a job, but was uncertain about taking it. One because they were vampires, every one knew that. Vampires, werewolves, witches, etc. were not fairytales in this time or place.

There were rules too. Such as, servants were not to speak to any of the Cullens unless spoken to, with the exception of Carlisle and Esme. You will be punished for any misbehavior. Nothing too extreme, of course.

They sound harsh, but they were in fact the two kindest people Bella had ever met. They really did care for their servants. There were just certain boundaries. They seemed so mysterious to Bella. She dismissed her paranoia and went back home to think everything through.

Working for the Cullens meant she would have to leave home. Surely, her father would have to quit his job to take care of her mother, then the income would be nothing. Bella's payments were food, shelter, and a monthly payment.

**(I'll warn you now. T****his fanfiction is definitely not historically correct. Don't expect anything to be spot on. I'm not the smartest in this area, so you'll just have to accept the way I make things. Lol. Plus it's a fanfiction, this my imagination/story)**

When she arrived home, she noticed her father was starting to catch what her mother had. Her parents both urged her to take the job, knowing they wouldn't be around for much longer and wanted her to be safe and taken care of. After hours of contemplating, Bella decided to take the job.


	2. The Grotto

**Chapter 1**

I finished packing what little items I had and headed towards the door. I sat my bag down and ran into my parents' room. My father was sitting in the rocking chair in the corner nearest the bed. My mother smiled as she saw me. I couldn't help it. I threw myself on her and hugged her as tightly as I could.

"Everything will be alright dear." My mother comforted me as she stroked my hair. I sniffled.  
"I can't do it! I can't leave you two when you're in this state!" I cried. My mother patted my shoulder.  
"You must do this, Bella. You're helping us, not hurting us." She continued in a smooth voice. I couldn't help but feel guilty about this whole thing. I didn't want to leave my parents when they were both so ill. Especially my mother. My father was getting to that point though, too!

My father gently tugged on my arm, telling me it was time for me to leave. I reluctantly pulled away from the woman who gave me life and said my last goodbye.

I had to help my father walk. He was getting weaker each day. Before I picked up my bag, I hugged my father. Tears clouded my vision. He just rubbed my back and told me how proud of me he was only making it harder to hold in my sob.

"And remember," He said, "no matter what, you'll always be my little princess. My baby girl. Your mother and I will always love you." And he kissed my forehead. I nodded, unable to speak. I quickly wiped my tears with my sleeve and grabbed my bag.

As soon as I heard the door shut behind me, I ran. I ran as quickly as I could. I only stopped when I couldn't breathe anymore. I was sweating; my body felt as if a horse had trampled me. I threw my bag on the ground near an isolated river in the forest. There was no one around for miles, I knew. My knees buckled and I fell onto the damp soil. I made my way to the river. I didn't bother taking my raggedy dress off. I'm sure it smelt like sweat and body odor of a teenage girl. I slid into the water and slumped against a nearby boulder.

The water felt wonderful on my over heated body. While I soaked up the cool wetness of the river, I remembered the goodbye scene. As the memory replayed itself, the tears came back. And just like before, I fought them. I only let one escape and I blocked the rest.

Before the sky could get any darker, I resumed my journey. The Cullen Kingdom was only two more miles away. I could see the huge building from here. That included all the trees and hills that enveloped me.

About a mile later, I ventured from the shortcut and entered the village of the Cullen Kingdom. There were very few beggars, many stands, and many people. The Cullens knew how to rule their region.

I continued walking until I reached the gates that surrounded the Kingdom. There were two big guards standing on either side of the large gate.

"Uhm, I'm Isabella Swan. I'm a new servant of the Cullens." I said to them. They looked at each other and the one on the right moved to the side and let me through.

There were a few long steps to the front door. Well, front door was an understatement. I was about to reach for the knocker when the door suddenly swung open. It looked like it took some Herculean strength to open them, but as it opened up some more, I noticed a little bobbing head covered in short black hair.

"Isabella! Wait, you liked to be called Bella. Let me be the first to welcome you to the Cullen Kingdom, Bella! I'm Alice Cullen, one of Carlisle's daughters. Follow me. I'll show you to your room. Then you can clean up and I'll make sure you get to where you need to be!" She grabbed my hand and started dragging me around. I jumped when I first felt her skin on mine. Her hands were ice cold! There's no way that temperature was healthy! I should get someone!

"Uh, forgive me Miss Cullen for speaking out of turn, but your hands! They're like ice! Should I get assistance?" I asked calmly. Though my eyes were wide. Alice stopped. She turned to look at me. Her eyes were the same color as Carlisle and his wife Esme. They were the loveliest shade of topaz. The deepest gold.

She stood there for a minute with a confused expression on her face. She cocked her head to the side, studying me. Then she laughed. She actually started laughing at me. She then continued pulling me.

"How old are you, Bella?"  
"I am fifteen, Miss Cullen." I replied.  
"I see. You're one of our youngest workers, now. You have pretty skin." She added.  
"Oh, thank you Miss Cullen."  
"Please Bella, call me Alice." She asked. I nodded.  
"Ok. Here's your room! It's kind of small and you have two roommates. All of the servants' rooms are on this part of the hall. Down there are the men's rooms. Now to show you the shower room." She led me a few doors down and opened the door in front of us. Inside, there were four large tubs. They each would only fit one person, but they looked very roomy. Enough space to move around in. They were each circled by a curtain.

Across from the tubs were the sinks. There were four sinks with mirrors above them. Then against the other wall were four stalls each containing a toilet.

**(Ok, yes they have toilets and sinks. I know there wasn't exactly indoor plumbing, but there is in my story. Sorry. There ARE sinks and toilets in here. Oh and the tubs were not the porcelain or whatever it is we have now. They aren't that )**

I looked around. It didn't look that bad. It was very plain, but it looked very nice considering it was the servant lavatory.

"This," Alice swept her hand towards the room, "is the women's restroom. If a tub is not available, or a stall or a sink is not available, you must wait your turn. As others must wait on you for their turn as well. Well I am off. I would like you to clean up from your trip here and go get settled in your room. Your roommates will then take over." She said.

"Thank you, Miss Alice."  
"Oh, and if there's ever an emergency, a life threatening situation, make sure you get one of us! If there is possible danger, you must get Carlisle or Esme. If it's absolutely life threatening, tell one of us. The rules don't count when it comes to the safety of our house keepers." She smiled and pranced out of the bathroom and gently shut the door behind her.

I set my clothes next to my bag and relaxed in the tub of warm water. It felt good against my already tensed muscles. I didn't exactly have the most strength and muscle, but I was sure I would have them after a week here.

After scrubbing away my worries with the cloth and soap, I stepped out of the tub and dried off. I searched through my bag for another outfit. My outfits consisted of five raggedy servant-type dresses. One of them was an old one of my mother's that no longer fit her. I decided on that one and walked back to my room. I had to count the number of doors until I got to mine, not remembering exactly which one it was.

When I opened the door, there was one girl there. She looked about my age. She looked up when I shut the door.

"You must be our new roomy." She smiled. "My name is Angela." She held out her hand for me to shake.  
"I'm Isabella. But I go by Bella." I greeted.  
"Well hello, Bella. It's nice to a new face here every now and then." She took my bag from me and set it on the bed in the corner of the room. She explained to me that this was to be my bed. Our other roommate was a girl named Lucia. She was sixteen. Only one year older than I. Angela was sixteen also, but she would be seventeen in four months. Lucia had just turned sixteen in January, three months ago.

"I think they like to put the youngest ones together. I think we are the youngest here out of the girls. There's Lauren and Jessica too. Lauren's nineteen and Jessica's eighteen, I think. Wait. Yeah, Jessie's eighteen." She continued to describe the women in the services. There were a few in their twenties, and the rest were in their forties or above. It was pretty much the same with the guys. Pretty much, the ages ranges were 15-70. The Cullens wanted experienced workers, along with the new found strength in the young people. It was logical.

Angela led me to the kitchen, telling me about every hall we passed. There was one grand staircase. It was massive! It took up just about the whole wall! It split into two after the first flight. There were some little stairs in the kitchens and other rooms that went to the basement. Some of those little stairs cases led upstairs that led to the bedrooms just in case any of its royal tenants needed anything.

There were a few teenage boys working in the kitchens. The rest were women; some of them older, some young. The other girls and guys were cleaning the house and floors, I noticed on my tour.

Angela also led me outside to where the stables were and the smoke house was for cooking meats. And there was also a place for chopping wood. The entire area surround the 'back yard' was the most beautiful garden! It was filled with flowers I was sure I had never seen before. It was very exotic and colorful. The smell radiating from it, as we got closer, was light and pretty. The men were scattered around the yard. On the other side of the garden were the woods. The immeasurable forests. Who knew there was so much green in this area!

"This is such a beautiful place!" I exclaimed as we continued outside.  
"It really is! And we do work shifts. So when you've got the day, or shift, off, you can come here! I do. It's lovely." She answered.

I really liked Angela. She was nice, down-to-earth, helpful, and she was pretty too. There just weren't many girls like that. I was glad she was my first friend.

As we began smelling and touching the flowers in the middle of the garden, I heard laughter. It was very loud and sounded like a boom. We listened further and I heard another voice with it. The voice was beautiful! I could tell it was a male's voice. Probably around my age. It was velvety and soft though he was yelling and playing around. I was immediately drawn closer.

Angela followed me. When we saw a glimpse of splashing water and shirts thrown over a nearby branch, she rolled her eyes.  
"Of course. That's Emmett. The really big one over there diving in the little hollow. He likes to goof around a lot." I saw the boy she was talking about. He was very bulky. He had dark brown curly hair and big muscles. His face had a boyish look to it, though I could tell he was well into his teen years.

The other boy with him was the one who caught my eye. He had reddish-brown hair. Bronze. It was long when wet. It covered his eyes. He too had muscles. They were very nice! Definitely not as big as Emmett's, but they were there. Angela followed my stare and sighed.

"That," she pointed, "is Edward. Emmett's younger brother. Isn't he _gorgeous_?! They both are, actually. They work out here. I've never seen them work inside. To be honest, I wouldn't want Emmett near any cooking utensil or cleaning solution. God knows what would happen." She laughed. "Emmett's fun. Edward kind of keeps to himself. Well, he's just really quiet. You have to talk to him first, but sometimes it doesn't last very long. He's a nice guy and all. He's the perfect gentleman! But if you ask me, the guy needs to branch out more. He's the one that has to keep Emmett on task though." I looked closer at the boys. On Edward's side, there was a huge purplish-blue spot and there was a cut on his arm. Emmett, too, had a bruise but it was on his shoulder.

I tugged on Angela's sleeve.  
"What happened to them?" I asked. The injuries weren't too noticeable, but they were there.  
"Edward has quite the temper I hear. And, I mean look at Emmett! With Edward's temper and Emmett's…well Emmett, that can't be a pretty fight. But I've never seen them get into a serious fight. They usually just joke around with each other." She shrugged.

"Come on. We better get you to work now. You can help me in the kitchens for today. We'll see how you adjust and then assign you. You've had experience, right?" Angela said. It sounded more like hushed murmuring to me. My mind was focused on something-no- someONE else.

"Uhh…huh?" I asked, still watching this bronze-haired boy.

"Bella? Bella. I need you to tear your eyes from the two gorgeous males swimming in the grotto." She slightly shook my shoulders catching my attention.  
"Did you hear anything I said?"  
"Uh, not really." I replied sheepishly. She laughed and looped her arm through mine.  
"Come on, silly. We've got to get to work."

I turned to look at Edward again. As soon as I caught sight of him, his eyes met mine. They held me there. I saw the corners of his mouth form a little smile.


	3. Red Tulips

**Chapter 3: Red Tulips**

The kitchens were busy. Angela had put me to work with some boy who introduced himself as Eric. We worked together. He was friendly, perhaps a little too friendly...

Eric had explained to me that even though the Cullens couldn't eat human food, the servants were often eating. There were many to be fed.

As I was putting a batch of cookies in the oven, a bell rang. I quickly shut the oven door and wiped my hands off on my apron.

"Ok guys, let's go. Everyone to the main room!" An older woman shouted across the suddenly chaotic kitchen. Still confused, I went to find Angela.

"Bella! There you are! We have to go the main room now." She said while grabbing my hand and leading me out of the room.

"Why? What's going on?"

"That bell that went off means that the Cullens have called a meeting for all of the workers. They make a few announcements then send us on our way. It doesn't take long."

We entered the main room, which was a _huge_ furniture-less room with a high, beautiful ceiling. This must be the ballroom. All the servants sat on the floor as the ones from outside stood around them. Angela nudged me with her elbow and nodded her head towards the front of the room. There standing in front of us all were the Cullens. Not all the Cullens, just Carlisle and his wife. I was beginning to wonder if they actually had children or not, besides Alice of course.

"Thank you all for coming. I called everyone together because I have a big announcement to make." We all sat patiently waiting for him to continue.

"As you know, my wife's birthday is next week. A ball is scheduled for that date. There will be many people here. We have invited our friends from the Black Kingdom and Newton Kingdom of course, as well as many others. We appreciate your cooperation and advise you to get everything done as soon as you can. Thank you for your time, you may all get back to work. Have a great day!" Carlisle spoke. He and Esme left the room while we all stayed behind.

As soon as they were gone, everyone began speaking. Most of the buzzing conversation was excitement, while the rest were irritated.

"I love her birthday balls! They are always fun!" and "More work for us…"

I looked around the room while Angela was speaking to another girl sitting beside her. My eyes stopped as they made their way to the back of the room.

There, leaning against the doorway talking to his brother, was Edward Mason. I couldn't help but to stare. From the looks of it, they weren't discussing the ball. The two started laughing. Emmett mused Edward's hair and the next thing I knew, they were running towards outside.

"Hey Angela?" I poked her arm. She turned from her conversation to face me.

"Yeah?"

"Are we free to leave now?"

"Of course! And our shift is over in a few minutes. There's no use going back now. So you have the rest of the day off." She smiled.

"Ok. I think I'm going to go do some exploring of my own." I started getting up.

"If you need me, I'll be out there in a minute." I nodded and continued on my way.

Once outside, I walked to the garden. A gazebo sat in the middle of it as well as a couple of wooden benches scattered out. I sat in the gazebo and admired the scenery.

I heard laughter again. I immediately knew who it was. When they came in sight, I looked at the tulips just to the right of me. I heard hushed speaking, but couldn't make anything out. The footsteps stopped.

I almost jumped when a booming voice yelled, "Hey! Enjoying those flowers?" Emmett was walking towards me. Edward was still standing and had an annoyed look on his face. Was it because I interrupted their fun?

Emmett came closer and Edward started following. When they entered the gazebo, I tried to avoid their gaze.

"They're lovely." I responded. They each took a seat on either side of me. I couldn't help the blush rising to my cheeks.

"That they are. I haven't seen you around. You must be new."

"Uhm, yeah. I just started." I said, still not able to look at them.

"Really? What's your name?" Emmett asked.

"Isabella, but everyone calls me Bella." My voice timid.

"Doesn't Bella mean beautiful?" He nudged my shoulder when my cheeks resembled the red tulips.

"So Beautiful, you look pretty young. How old are you?"

"Uh…I'm….uh….15." I stammered feeling a little awkward.

"Wow. You are pretty young. Well Beautiful, I'm Emmett. This is my brother Edward." He motioned towards Edward. "I'm older. Just by a year. He's seventeen and I'm eighteen. You guys are pretty close in age. Just two years apart." He smirked at us. I blushed…more.

"You being eighteen is debatable, Emmett." Edward spoke after remaining silent the whole conversation. "His maturity level is about seven." He laughed. His voice made my head fuzzy. It was like music.

"You're jealous. He's always been jealous of his big brother." Emmett teased. I smiled. They continued bickering for a minute. I couldn't help but smile at the two. Their relationship seemed effortless. You could tell they loved each other. It made me long for siblings.

"So Bella, do you have any _annoying_ brothers or sisters?" Edward asked.

"No. I'm an only child."

"Lucky!" Emmett boomed. I giggled. Wait, did I really just giggle? It was silent for a few seconds. I used the moment to take in my surroundings, trying desperately to not look at the two gorgeous males sitting on either side of me.

"Hey Beautiful, how about my brother and I take you on a tour? I mean, I'm sure you've been shown around, but we can _really _show you around. We know all the cool places."

"Thank you Emmett, but I wouldn't want to impose on you guys. I'm sure you have a lot of work to do."

"Nonsense." Emmett stood and offered me his hand. Edward stood up as well. It appeared I had no choice.

"What are your jobs?" I asked quietly. I wasn't sure if it was my turn to start talking or not.

"We work outside. Whatever they need big strong men for, that's what we do!" Emmett answered. I laughed. Edward smiled. It was dazzling.

"What do you do, Bella?" Edward asked.

"I work inside. If anything needs cooked or cleaned, I'm there." I sighed. Not knowing if I had been assigned to any certain job yet.

"You said you just started? What did you do before you came here?"

"Uhm…I just…I helped out at home." These boys kept making me stumble over my words!

"Doing what?" Emmett inquired.

"Well, my mother looked after another family's children. I helped her sometimes. Other than that I just took care of the house and everything. My parents didn't always have time to make meals and keep the house organized, so I was the cook and maid I suppose." Speaking about my parents like this made me long for their company. When I left them, they were so ill. I felt a sting in my eyes. I tried to hide my despair, but apparently it was noticeable.

"Are you ok?" Edward asked me. I swallowed before answering.

"Yes. I'm fine." I took a deep breath. "So what did you do before you came here?" They both remained silent for a few seconds.

"Oh you know. Stuff." Emmett's voice struggled with keeping the light mood.

"Did you help your parents or do your own work?" I was curious. They looked at each other. They were both taller than me, therefore able to look at each other from above my head. I looked at Emmett, then Edward. Edward's eyes were suddenly hard and cold.

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to pry." I said feeling genuinely sorry that I had asked something so personal. They seemed so happy and carefree just a minute ago..

"Don't worry about it. It's just…complicated." Emmett replied. Edward's jaw was tense. I had definitely hit a sore spot. I was eager to correct my mistake. It was hard to start talking again. I was always the quiet one. I hardly ever spoke aloud in public, much less with two men, but they gave me a warm feeling. I enjoyed their presence. I worked up the courage and began talking…the whole time the heat increased in my cheeks.

"H-h-how long have you b-been here?"

"A year." There was a intensity in the air that you could cut through. I felt horrible for causing it and immediately began looking for an excuse to leave. All of a sudden I heard my name being called.

"Bella! I've been…looking….for you." She mumbled as she took in my company. Her eyes went wide, mouth slightly ajar.

"Angela! Uhm, Emmett and Edward were just showing me around." Their faces were lightened and they smiled at Angela.

"Mason brothers at your service," Emmett greeted. He took Angela's hand and kissed it as any gentleman would do. Angela blushed. It was nice to see that I wasn't the only one.

"Uh…Mhm. I-I told Bella that I would walk with her...?," She offered. I nodded perhaps a little too vigorously. Edward noticed and sighed.

"That was the plan, we'd better get going." I said.

"Right. Bye Beautiful," Emmett teased. Angela's eyes almost popped out of their sockets. I mumbled my farewell.

"See you around, B-Bella." Did he really just stutter? Because of me? Surely not.

"You too Edward." And we left.

**EDWARD POV**

The announcement didn't mean much to me and Emmett. All we had to do was make sure the back looked pretty and clean.

We left the room and raced outside. We were just messing around until I stopped dead in my tracks. Sitting in the garden, under the gazebo, was the most beautiful girl I've ever seen. She had dark brown hair pulled up in a loose messy bun. Her eyes were glued to the flowers to the side of her.

"Whatcha looking at?" Emmett whispered. He followed my gaze to the girl.

"Ah. I see. She's pretty. Who is she?"

"I-I don't know. I've never seen her before. That's definitely not something I could forget seeing." I told him. Still unable to look away from her.

"Well then, we better make her feel welcome." He wriggled his eyebrows. I tore my eyes away from her and stared at my brother in disbelief.

"No! We can't just go and talk to her!" I whispered anxiously.

"Why not? It's being friendly." Knowing Emmett, he'd probably scare her. I usually keep to myself with a few exceptions. I've never been afraid or nervous to talk to others, I just chose not to. However, this girl made me tremble. I didn't even know her!…yet. Next thing I know Emmett's back is to me and walking towards her.

After I got over my shock in his bluntness, I hurried after him.

"They're lovely," she said. Emmett sat next to her at the end of the bench leaving me with no choice but to sit on her other side. I glared at him. But then again, part of me was grateful.

I thanked the wind for blowing gently enough to carry her wonderful scent. Not only did she look amazing, she smelt it too! Because that's not a creepy thing to say…

"Isabella, but everyone calls me Bella."

"Doesn't Bella mean beautiful?" I could have kicked Emmett. He was flirting with _my_... my what? True that he doesn't mean anything by it. In fact, I knew he was doing this for me. I looked at her from the corner of my eye and noticed a faint pink on her cheeks. How adorable!

"Uh…I'm….uh….15." Really? She's only 15? Hmm. Could have fooled me…

"I'm older. Just by a year. He's seventeen and I'm eighteen. You guys are pretty close in age. Just two years apart." he smirked in our direction. I glared. Ok, now he was just messing with me. Bella's pink shifted to a darker reddish-pink.

"You being eighteen is debatable, Emmett." I spoke up. "His maturity level is about seven," I laughed.

"You're jealous. He's always been jealous of his big brother." Emmett teased. Bella smiled. We continued bantering back and forth. This was like it always was with me and Emmett. Except when we were at home with…I quickly focused on something else.

"So Bella, do you have any _annoying_ brothers or sisters?" I asked her.

"No. I'm an only child."

"Lucky!" Emmett boomed. She giggled. Wait, I know from experience that girls giggle when they like someone who's around at the moment. Definitely a flirting technique. The look on her face afterwards said it was clearly unintentional. So did that mean she liked…one of us? She probably thought Emmett was cute. He's more talkative and flirty anyway.

"Hey Beautiful, how about my brother and I take you on a tour? I mean, I'm sure you've been shown around, but we can _really _show you around. We know all the cool places." I was very tempted to use Emmett's nickname for her, but I don't think I could without restraining myself from touching her face or pulling her to me. _Edward! Control yourself! You just met the poor girl!_

"Thank you Emmett, but I wouldn't want to impose on you guys. I'm sure you have a lot of work to do."

"Nonsense." Emmett stood and gently lifted her by offering her his hand.

"What are your jobs?" Her voice was timid and almost inaudible as we started walking.

"We work outside. Whatever they need big strong men for, that's what we do!" Emmett answered. Bella laughed. I smiled. It was a beautiful sound.

"What do you do, Bella?" I asked. I figured if she's making an effort to have a conversation with two stranger men, I could make an attempt to make a conversation with a beautiful woman.

"I work inside. If anything needs cooked or cleaned, I'm there."

"You said you just started? What did you do before you came here?" Unable to contain my curiosity.

"Uhm…I just…I helped out at home." She stuttered. I smiled inwardly. We were making her stumble over her words. I hoped it was just me, but I highly doubted it. Thats why I tried not to say so much. She had me stumbling over my words. So far, I've done pretty well at controlling it.

"Doing what?" Emmett inquired.

"Well, my mother looked after another family's children. I helped her sometimes. Other than that I just took care of the house and everything. My parents didn't always have time to make meals and keep the house organized, so I was the cook and maid I suppose." It was quiet for a minute as we walked. It made me think of my parents. My longings. My wants. I blocked it out of my mind. I looked over at her and noticed the longing in her eyes. Her expression was far away. Suddenly, there were tears on the brims of her eyes.

"Are you ok?" I asked. My arms twitched with the urge to pull her into me and comfort her. Inhale her scent and bury my face in her hair...

"Yes. I'm fine."She took a deep breath to collect herself. "So what did you do before you came here?"

Silence.

"Oh you know. Stuff." Emmett's voice struggled with keeping the light mood.

"Did you help your parents or do your own work?" Emmett and I looked at each other over Bella's head. I couldn't talk about that. I couldn't. I did everything I could to keep my mind from straying to this and this little girl tries to drag it out of me. There's no way that's happening.

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to pry." She seemed genuinely sorry. I felt bad for the sudden anger I felt towards her. It's not her fault, she didn't know.

"Don't worry about it. It's just…complicated." Emmett replied. I was still unable to completely erase my mind. Those pathetic imbeciles barged into my mind with no permission or desire. Just like when they first entered my life.

"H-h-how long have you b-been here?"

"A year." The atmosphere went from light hearted to so tense it was almost visible.

"Bella! I've been…looking….for you." A girl I knew as Angela walked up to us. Her eyes bugged out.

"Angela! Uhm, Emmett and Edward were just showing me around." Emmett and I cleared our expressions to what they had been before. Happy and carefree. We smiled at Angela.

"Mason brothers at your service," Emmett greeted. He took Angela's hand and kissed it as any gentleman would do. Angela blushed, though it was no comparison to Bella.

"Uh…Mhm. I-I told Bella that I would walk with her," It sounded more like a question than a statement. Bella's head bounced up and down vigorously. I sighed knowing that the one chance I had to get to know Bella had been ruined because I couldn't hold back my emotions.

"That was the plan, we'd better get going." She said. Her voice a little to relieved. Yep. I felt like a jack ass.

"Right. Bye Beautiful," Emmett teased. Angela's eyes almost popped out of their sockets. She mumbled her goodbye.

"See you around, B-Bella." Hell! Did I seriously just almost call her Beautiful?! Great. Now it looks like I'm nervous and stutter-y.

"You too Edward." She smiled. They left while Emmett and I stayed behind.

I hoped with all my heart that I would see her again. And not be a complete jerk. I smiled to myself. Oh yes, I'll see her. I will make it happen.


	4. Shirtless

**MY EXPLAINATION FOR TAKING SO LONG IS ON THE NEXT CHAPTER!! PLEASE REVIEW AND TELL ME HOW YOU LIKE THE NEW CHAPTERS!!**

**CHAPTER 4: SHIRTLESS**

**BPOV!!**

I was cleaning the ballroom floor with some of the others when Eric plopped down right beside me.

"Hey Bella!"

"Hey Eric." I replied less enthusiastically. This boy just didn't understand personal space.

"I thought I'd come help you out since this place is so big."

"That's sweet of you Eric, but really I'm fine. There's seven others here that are cleaning as well. I can handle it." I hoped he would leave me alone, but I still felt his presence beside me. I looked at him and he shrugged.

"A little help can't hurt." He smiled. Ugh!

It's almost been three weeks and Esme's 'birthday ball' would be in a few days. There was a lot of cleaning to be done. Even the people who usually worked outside had to come lend a hand. Fortunately, that meant the Masons had to help too. Edward and I got to get to know each other a little more.

"_Bella, take that bucket and go help clean the atrium with Jessica and Tyler." Ordered Linda. Linda was a servant too, but she was one of the head people in charge of kitchen duty. I ran over to the buckets and tried lifting one. It was filled to the top! All of them were. I now knew why it took a while to get to the atrium. As I was heaving and tugging, I felt a cold hand on mine and another on my back. _

"_Let me get that for you." Said a sweet voice that made me melt. It was Edward. _

"_Oh, no. That's ok. I can get this. You just go back to whatever you were doing." I smiled at him and went back to my heaving. Both of his hands reached down and lifted the bucket as if it weighed nothing. The water didn't even spill over the edges. _

"_I was sent in here, so I guess I'll partner up with you," He gave me a crooked grin that almost knocked me on my behind. I thanked him politely and we went to the atrium. Watching Edward scrub the floors was one of my favorite activities. His muscle's flexed with each stroke and when he rang out the sponge. Not to mention how his messy bronze hair would sometimes fall in his eyes. We talked a little and learned more about each other. I never asked anything about his family or what he did before he came here. I remembered from last time I tried to ask and the tension was unbearable, so I kept those questions to myself. _

_We got along well. I preferred his company much more than Jessica and Eric. Neither one of them stopped talking to me as soon as they started! Edward was very laid back. I liked that. _

As I came back to the present, I noticed I had finished my portion of the ballroom. Of course with the help of Eric, but at least he didn't try talking to me very much this time. I grabbed my bucket and headed back to the kitchens. I went and sat at one of the tables. Just as I started to finally relax, I was accompanied by two guys both of whom I hadn't met.

"Hey! I've heard we got a new one! You're quite a looker too." The one with black spiky hair said. He smiled at me. "I'm Shane. This is my friend James. We've been meaning to welcome you, but we just haven't been able to."

"But now we do," said James. He held out his hand to me and I shook it. "I'm James. You're Bella, right?"

I nodded. I didn't mean to come across rude, but these guys were making me feel nervous.

"That's a pretty name." Shane complimented. " So how do you like it here so far? I hope no one's been giving you a hard time."

"Uh, no. I like it here."

"Good. If someone ever does mess with you, you just come to me and I'll take care of it." James offered. It seemed like a sweet offer, but he kind of creeped me out. Plus, Emmett had already told me that. I liked Emmett. He was a fun guy. Angela was right. He did mess around a lot. He always made me laugh.

I felt a hand push a loose hair strand behind my ear.

"You're pretty." I looked up and saw Shane's beautiful blue eyes looking back at me. What was with these guys here?! Edward has the most captivating green eyes, Emmett has gorgeous hazel eyes, Shane has beautiful ice blue eyes, and James has a strange grayish blue tint.

"Oh…thank you." I really was flattered. I knew it was just customary to be nice to the new people and compliment them. Even if it called for making things up. I got up and walked to the busy kitchen. People were baking, mixing, and whatnot. I decided to find something that needed to be done. However, that didn't stop the two from following me and talking to me. They told me where they were from, how old they were, and other stuff that I didn't care to know.

I felt rude, but Shane and James wouldn't leave me alone. Clearly I was busy, yet they wouldn't go away! I thought about taking Emmett up on his offer, but he was nowhere in sight even if I did. Just when I thought things couldn't get any worse, Eric popped up.

"Hey Bella!" I greeted him back. He quickly dove into a conversation with the other two males. I thought this was my chance to escape, but as I turned to go farther into the kitchen, I felt someone grab my arm. James.

"Aw Bella, don't leave! I really love your company." He tried to flatter me, but it really just annoyed me. His smile didn't flatter me either.

"Oh. Well I'm sorry but I heard someone call my name and I better go before I get in trouble."

"I didn't hear anything." James replied. Suddenly, I really did hear my name. It was Lucia. One of my roommates. I was so thankful for her!

"Bella! I've been looking everywhere for you! Come on." She grabbed my hand and pulled me with her.

"Hey Bella, I'll see you around!" Shane kissed my hand followed by James. Ew. I suddenly realized what time it was. Once we were out of hearing range, I hugged Lucia.

"Thank you so much Lucy!"

"No problem!" She giggled.

"I've got to get out to Edward now. I told him I'd go on a walk with him last night." Lucia's eyes widened and her jaw dropped a little. She locked arms with me.

"Uh. You failed to mention this to me! Edward? As in Edward Mason??" I nodded. She shrieked.

"Oh my god. No way! That's so cool!" Her face brightened. I laughed. We walked outside to the nice fall weather. It was winter, but today felt like early autumn.

"I can't believe it! I just can't believe it!"Lucia said. "I still can't! Edward Mason…"As the thought soaked in, we sighed.

"He's gorgeous! You are so lucky! I really hope it works out! That would be so fun to say that my roommate was seeing one of the Masons!" Lucia giggled.

"Lucia! It's just a walk. That's it." I tried to calm her. "He's probably just going to tell me to leave him alone. I mean, I bet he thinks I'm stalking him." I had been saying hi to him every time he was near. And we always bumped into each other.

"Oh come on. Love, he doesn't waste his time like that. You would know if he didn't like you. Trust me."

"I doubt it…I suppose we shall wait."

"If only I could catch Emmett's attention. Mmm. That boy is delectable." Lucia licked her lips and I couldn't help but to burst out laughing. We looked across the yard to the two brothers and gaped at what we saw. The sharp intake of air was involuntary. They were shirtless. The two most gorgeous males here were shirtless. Right in front of me. And I was spending the next hour or so with one of them!

"They…he…shirt…oh my goodness!" Lucia was just was entranced as I.

"I can't do this! Look at him….oh would you look at him…ugh! No! I can't! He's so perfect! I'm so…me!" I said frantically. I couldn't go through with this! I couldn't even form a proper sentence just looking at the guy!

"Relax Bella, relax! Like you said, it's just a walk around the premises." Her words didn't do much, but she was right. I was freaking out over nothing.  
"Whew. Ok. You're right. It doesn't mean anything."  
"Yet." Lucia smiled. I glared at her.

Then Edward, Mr. Perfect, looked up at us.

"Hey Bella." He shouted.


	5. Involuntary Reactions

**SORRY FOR THE LACK OF UPDATES ON ALL MY FANFICS!! I KNOW YOU GUYS ARE FRUSTRATED WITH ME, BUT PLEASE HAVE PATIENCE. NOT ONLY DO I SUFFER FROM PROCRASTINATION, BUT ALSO WRITER'S BLOCK AND I'M IN MARCHING BAND. Anyone in Marching Band, understands how much that affects frequent updates. Marching season just started up again and I've been having a hard time getting the time to post the updates. But here are two chapters. This one is long, so I hope you like it!! Review! The more reviews, the quicker the update. **

**  
CHAPTER 5: INVOLUNTARY REACTIONS**

**EPOV!!**

Emmett and I walked to the few groups of tables in the kitchen where the servants ate. As soon as I sat down I looked up to see the beautiful Bella working at the counter facing me. I took in her appearance. Her was tied back in a messy bun with loose strands falling over her face. Her sleeves had been pushed up so they wouldn't get in the way of her duties throughout the day. There were light beads of sweat on her forehead from the heat of the kitchen. All this and she still captivated me with her beauty.

Angela whispered something in Bella's ear, causing them both to laugh. The sound of Bella's laughter was music to my ears. The girls continued talking as they worked side by side. Emmett was busy talking the guy sitting on the other side of him. I turned back to the sight in front of me.

"Oh wouldn't be nice, Angela? To live in a place like this?"  
"Silly Bella, we do!" Angela giggled.  
"Not as a servant, as an owner. I wish I could live here and wear the pretty dresses like the Cullen women! Wouldn't it be fun?" The girls sighed.  
"Ah. Yes. It would lovely, but we're servant girls Bella. It would take a lot to get us to the Cullen level. But we could still live a happy life, you know? We can get married and have children. A lot of women are happy living that life."  
"You're right. I don't care about all this stuff anyway. Sure it would be wonderful to have, but one can only dream…" Her eyes had a longing in them. There was a moment of silence until it was broken by Angela.  
"We shall work our way up to our own kingdom Bella!" She laughed. "We'll have a palace as great as this! With servants! Of course, we'll be kind to them and treat them properly. All the men will want to marry us!" They laughed and went back to work with a lighter mood.

I could still see that glimmer in Bella's eyes. I wish I could give her that. The first time I ever saw her smile I knew I would give her whatever she wanted. But as Angela said, we are but servants. It would be close to impossible to be on the opposite side.

"You better get some food in you, man." Emmett elbowed me and I was suddenly starving. Bella's eyes met mine when I glanced up. She blushed and busied herself again.

After I was finished eating, Emmett and I went outside and started chopping the logs for the much needed fire. After all, not everyone here is a vampire.

The winter was a mean one. It always is here. There was a light blanket of snow lying on the ground. It would glisten every now and then, reminding me of my sweet Bella. Well, she wasn't mine…yet.  
Her warm chocolate eyes gave off the most startling sparkle. Her wavy chestnut hair with the few strands waving freely. The soft curves of her body…her gentle embrace…her fragile body fitting in my arms like a puzzle…the feeling of that body against mine…the way her breasts squished on my chest…

"Edward!" I jumped at the sound of my brother's booming voice. The jolt cleared my head of the thoughts that were leading nowhere near appropriate…

"What is up with you lately? You're not as focused as you usually are. Is there something you want to talk about?" He asked. I admired his brotherly concern.

"I'm sorry, Em. I've just been...having trouble getting someone-thing! Some_thing_ off my mind.." He eyed me suspiciously and nodded.

"Nice try. You like her, don't you?"

"Like who? I don't know what you're talking about." I said stubbornly. Emmett grabbed my arm and pulled me to the gazebo where we often spent time thinking and just taking it easy.

"Bella. Don't even try to deny it. I see the way you look at her. Whenever she's in the same proximity, you go all wide eyed and distant." For a big lug that didn't take anything seriously, he was really perceptive.

"I really like her, Emmett. I don't know what to do. Every time I try to talk to her, my mind goes blank. Nothing seems to be the right thing to say. And that time she hugged me! I couldn't bring myself to let go! I just wanted to keep her there…Ugh. She probably thinks I'm just a stalker that wants to feel her up."

**(Ok, I'm using some modern language. Lol. Sorry it's not so…authentic? But the story line is more important. Plus it's easier to understand for all of us!)**

"I doubt that. You should get some alone time with her. You know, like invite her on a walk through the woods or something. Girls like that."

"I don't know how to ask her." As soon as I know what I'm going to say to her, and after practicing it over and over, I go up to her and forget it all. And what if she doesn't want to go with me? What if she thinks I'm luring her out there to kill her or something? She already knows I'm the weird guy that rejects every girl that comes his direction. Oh god. What if she thinks I don't like girls all together!

"Just ask. Next time you see her just go up to her. You'll probably end up saying something stupid at first, but once you get your voice going, you can just spit it out." Emmett smiled. I laughed. He doesn't know how right he is.

"Now come on. It's getting darker and if we want to finish while we can still see, we've got to get back to those logs now."

There was a lot of wood that needed to be chopped. The Cullens were holding a ball for Esme in a few days and just about everyone that would be there was human. The Blacks were invited, but they were werewolves. They didn't feel temperature. The Newtons on the other hand were human, as were the other guests that would be attending. A large fire would be necessary.

We had just finished and were headed to our room when I saw Bella walking down the hall. She reached behind her head and pulled out whatever was holding her hair back and swayed her head back and forth. I just stood there in the middle of the hallway and watched. She looked down at her feet as she continued walking and didn't see me. Then she ran right into my chest. What did I do? I stood there. Like a jackass.

"Oh! I'm so sorry! I didn't - Edward! I'm sorry! I didn't hurt you did I? I should have been paying more attention!" She looked at me for a few seconds and tilted her head in confusion. I finally figured out why. I was frozen with my jaw hanging and my eyes blazing into her. I shook myself out of my daze as quickly as I could.

"Oh, no it's ok. You didn't hurt me." Just the thought of her physically hurting me was laughable. She smiled, relieved._ It's now or never, Edward_. I told myself.

"So uh…"  
"Well I-"  
"I'm sorry. You go ahead." We said at the same time. We laughed.

"I was uh…going to ask you, of course you can say no! You don't have to. I mean, I would understand if you didn't to. And you're a busy girl so you probably don't even have the time-" Oh god. I'm rambling.

"Edward!" Bella put a hand on my chest which completely shut me up. She giggled then blushed. "What is it?" _Do it Edward. Like Emmett said, you'll say something stupid then you can ask. You've already got the stupid part down, now ask!_

"Do you want to go walk around the woods with me?" I asked quietly. She was silent for a minute then smiled.

"I would love to. I can finish my chores early tomorrow and we can go."

"That sounds great. I'll meet you at the gazebo." I smiled at her as calmly as I could. She smiled back.

"I'll see you then." She looked me up and down then continued to her room. Wait. What was _that_ about?! She just..she…she checked me out! I've seen a lot of girls check me out, and that was definitely what Bella just did! I ran into my room and jumped on top of Emmett's bed. Emmett had just finished putting pants on and looked at me oddly.

"What's with you?" He asked. I smiled.

"Ah! She said yes, didn't she? Yep. I knew she would. I'm big brother. I know these things. Now get the hell off my bed." With that, he threw me off his bed. I laughed. I was so happy I didn't care. I felt like a little kid. I was so happy over something so small.

I woke up to Emmett sitting on me and crushing my head to the pillow. I started working as fast as I could in hopes that I would finish before Bella.

It was a couple of hours past noon when I heard the faint whispers of Bella and some other girl.

**(Not sure how the time worked back in those days so just bare with me here.)**

"I can't believe it! I just can't believe it!" The other girl whispered excitedly. I knew the English accented voice to belong to a girl named Lucia. She was another girl who had thrown herself at me, but she was ok. Unlike other girls such as Jessica and Lauren, she understood me when I said I wasn't interested. I still liked Angela more. She never was interested in me. If she was, she never acted on it. I appreciated that. Not to mention the girl was really sweet.

"I still can't! Edward Mason…" They both let out a sigh. Emmett must have heard and chuckled a little, shaking his head at me. We went back to working, though we were still eavesdropping.

"He's gorgeous! You are so lucky! I really hope it works out! That would be so fun to say that my roommate was seeing one of the Masons!" Lucia giggled.

"Lucia! It's just a walk. That's it. He's probably just going to tell me to leave him alone. I mean, I bet he thinks I'm stalking him." What? How could she think that?? Emmett smiled.

"Oh come on. Love, he doesn't waste his time like that. You would know if he didn't like you. Trust me."

"I doubt it…I suppose we shall wait."

"If only I could catch Emmett's attention. Mmm. That boy is delectable." Lucia licked her lips and the girls started laughing. Emmett's eyes went wide with fear. I couldn't help but laugh. He whispered over to me with a plan to mess with the two. Since we were sweating and hot from all the work we've been doing and the weather wasn't too bad today, we decided to take off our shirts.

The cold actually felt nice against my bare skin. Emmett, of course, out did me in the muscle department. He was just…bigger.

There were two large gasps across the yard. We smiled.

"They…he…shirt…oh my goodness!"

"I can't do this! Look at him….oh would you look at him…ugh! No! I can't! He's so perfect! I'm so…me!"

"Relax Bella, relax! Like you said, it's just a walk around the premises." Lucia comforted.  
"Whew. Ok. You're right. It doesn't mean anything."  
"Yet." Lucia smiled.

I finished a few minutes later, though Emmett still had a little bit longer to go. He hadn't worked as hard and fast I did. He didn't have a reason to.

"Hey Bella." I said. They were sitting on an old bench near us. I smiled when she blushed and quickly averted her gaze. Lucia started flirting with Emmett, and Emmett being Emmett he flirted back. He didn't like Lucia, but he liked to flirt. A lot.

I turned to pick up my shirt, but saw it nowhere. Emmett wiggled his eyes at me. I went to him and whispered so the girls wouldn't hear.

"Give me my shirt!"  
"No! I'm sure Bella won't mind." He laughed.  
"I'll freeze!"  
"Nah. You'll be fine. If you get cold, I'm sure Bella wouldn't mind warming you with some body heat." I reached for my shirt, but Emmett ripped it in half.  
"You bastard." I whispered and walked off. I went over to Bella feeling more self-conscious than I've ever felt before. I'm seventeen. I've adjusted to my body since puberty. Now I felt like I had to prove myself to Bella which only made it more awkward for me. _Just_ _play it cool, Edward_.

"Hello Lucia. I'm sorry to steal Bella from you. I'll have her back before it gets too late." I smiled. Bella and I walked away into the forest. There was a moment of awkward silence at first. Bella twiddled her thumbs and kept her eyes glued to her feet. There was a faint blush on her cheeks.

"Uhm...are you-aren't you..uh, cold?" She asked. So I did make her nervous. I smiled to myself and like any other teenage male, I felt an ego boost.

"Nah. The temperature feels good on my skin. Working out here sure gets a sweat going." I suddenly realized how awkward that statement could be taken. I hurried to find something to start a conversation.

"So how has your day been so far?" I asked her.

"Oh. It's been…interesting." Her voice faltered.

"Interesting? How so?" We walked further into the forest. She remained silent for awhile. I almost thought she hadn't heard me.

"Just uhm, made a few more friends."

"That doesn't sound so bad." I laughed. She blushed. Why would she blush about making new friends here?

"Well, they were very friendly." She said nervously.

"I know everyone here. Maybe I can tell you if you should be cautious with them." I smiled at her. She smiled back. She was cute when she smiled. I liked it.

"I think their names were James and Shane. This guy I work with, Eric, he introduced me. The three of them are very welcoming." No. I was not ok with that. When I said nothing, she spared a look up at me. I mean literally up. Her head reached my shoulders.

"I mean, it was nothing. They just offered to help me anytime I needed anything and that they could show me around." The hell they will! She's too good for them.

"Hmm." Was all I said. I didn't want to scare her by seeming possessive, even though I was. _This is ridiculous, Edward!_ I told myself. _You invited her here with you! Talk!_

"I think there's better people here you should surround yourself with." That was the best way I could put it without being a jerk.

"Like you?" She asked. I looked down at her and she was smiling.

"Well, if you insist." I smiled back. It's time for me to get in tune with my inner Emmett. We were brothers after all. I could flirt like him.

"So what made you say yes to coming out here with me? I mean, you never know what I could possibly do to you out here." _Oh trust me Bella, I could do many things to you out here!_ "I could be crazy, you know."

"If you are, I guess I'll have to find out the hard way." She laughed.

"Perhaps it was just my dazzling abilities." I teased. She didn't laugh like I had expected her to. Maybe I was being too cocky. Back it down, Edward.

"Perhaps." She replied. I immediately saw that sparkle in her eyes when I looked in her direction. We stopped walking and faced each other. I wanted to my arm around her waist and increase the closeness between us. I spaced out for a minute and the next thing I know, my arm is wrapped around Bella's waist and she's looking at me with distant gleaming eyes. Oops! I'm not sure how that happened.

"Bella. I really like you." Did I just say that?

"I-I really like you t-too, Edward." She replied. That shocked me. I no longer had any control over myself. My mouth was now connected to my brain leaving no time for editing my thoughts. My body was acting on its own accord, though I did everything I could to control myself.

"You're stuttering." _Be Emmett. Be Emmett. Think Emmett_. "It's cute." I smirked. Her eyes slightly widened.

"I-you-you're…" Then she just sighed. We stood there for a minute just looking at each other. There was a loose strand of hair that had just found itself freedom. I pushed it behind her ears. She looked down and blushed.

"I love it when you blush. You look adorable when you do." Her face showed shock.

"Really??" I smiled.

"Yes. Really."

"Only when I blush I guess…" She trailed off.

"Yes. Only when you blush." Her face saddened and looked away. I tilted her chin back up to me. "Any other time, you're beautiful." She blushed again. I smiled even bigger. Again, we stood there for a few minutes. Not saying anything.

"It's getting dark." She said. I hadn't realized how long it had been since we left.

"We should go back." I freed her from my grip and instead grabbed her hand. I leaned down to kiss her cheek and as I was pulling away, she used her free hand to pull me to her lips.

Our lips connected and I felt a sharp tingle flow through my body from my head to my feet. Her lips were warm and soft. Just like every other part of her. I wanted to deepen the innocent kiss, but decided not to. I didn't want to go too far. I gently pulled away and brushed her cheek with my hand and could feel the heat in her rosy cheeks.

We started walking back through the forest. The thought of 'accidentally' getting lost crossed my mind a few times, but I didn't want to scare her. The night was going nicely so far.

When we walked out of the shadows of the trees, Emmett had just finished and was heading inside.

"Hey Em!" I called. He turned around and saw me. He smiled as he held my torn shirt in his right hand. I was still mad at him for that, but I felt a new flow of confidence. We walked up to him, still hand in hand. I leaned down and kissed Bella's hand before I bid her farewell and watched her walk inside.

"Told you!" Emmett mused my hair. I just laughed.

"Let's go." I slept great that night.


	6. Just an authors note, sorry

I edited the previous chapters!! It's not as sloppy now =)

Please review guys! They really make my day!! And if you have any suggestions on how I can make this better or just ideas for future chapters, let me know!! I'm more than happy to have you share your thoughts with me!!


	7. Mess Passion

**Haha, ok this chapters got some fluff to it. Not a complete lemon, but just a little fluffy. I hope you guys like it. I forgot if I rated this T or M. Depending on that, I'll write a lemon later on. I doubt it seeing as I'm thinking I put it down as T. Someone remind me.**

**Thanks for the patience. This is my favorite story of mine so I'm paying more attention to it. So here's chapter 6. Hope you enjoy it!**

**Chapter 6: Messy Passion**

The day had finally arrived. We servants were running around like chickens that had just lost their heads.  
Various foods were being served on large platters with wine as the main beverage. There were little children running around the place and laughing. Their parents and other guests that had been invited were in the ballroom dancing and twirling across the floor, mixed in with everyone who was mingling with one another. As for me, I was one of the servants busying about in the kitchen. My roommates were off somewhere else fulfilling their duties. A body standing before me caught my attention.

"Well hello there Bella." I nodded quickly and went back to filling the serving platter in front of me. I knew who the voice belonged to. James. He wouldn't leave me alone for the past couple of days. It was beginning to get a little creepy. I shoved the platter in his arms.

"Here James. Take this and go set it out." I ordered. He set off to the ballroom. I strategically walked in between the sweating, tired, working bodies and went to the pile of dirty dishes. More wine glasses were needed and I decided to wash some since no one else had the time to. They were all focusing on the task they were given.

"Bella! I'll take care of those, you need to go outside and tie the horses up in the stables. Just because these people have money, doesn't mean they can't lead their horses to a bloody stable!" Mimi, one of the women that supervised the kitchens, grumbled the last part. I hurried off outside towards the stables. The night was a chilly one. I shivered and pulled my rolled up sleeves down over my fingers.

I got to the stable and saw nothing. All the horses (that people had actually ridden to the party) had been stowed away properly. I decided to take a little break from the hectic kitchens. For all Mimi knew, I was dealing with horses.

I sat down next to a stack of hay next to the stable entrance and let the cool air whip the heat away from my body. As I leaned my head back and closed my eyes, I heard a noise. It sounded like footsteps on leaves. I waited for a minute, but didn't hear it again so I resumed my relaxing position.

"Are you alright?" A voice nearly boomed. It almost reminded me of Emmett's, but it was softer. Nevertheless, I jumped. I looked up. There was a seriously large tan man standing a mere few inches in front of me.

"I…uh…I'm f-fine." I stuttered. He smiled and offered me a hand. I got to my feet and quickly brushed myself off. He looked at me then his head tilted to the side.

"Are you a servant?" He asked. I looked down at my attire. Does it _look _like I'm a servant??

"Yes, sir. I am."

"Ah, you are indeed a servant with the beauty of royalty." He kissed the top of my hand. I blushed.

"My lord, you really should be inside where it's much warmer." I snuck a peek at his face and there was no denying his attractive features. He had a boyish face though he was clearly not a boy. The type of face that could look young and sweet or daring and sexy.

_Sexy?? Really Bella? You've obviously had too much wine. _

He grinned widely, "The temperature doesn't affect me. I'm Jacob Black." He introduced himself, and again he grabbed my hand and kissed it. So this was Black's son! Wait. The temperature doesn't affect him…Of course not! They're werewolves! I felt a tremor rip through my body as I suddenly realized I was standing alone outside with a werewolf who could have eaten me as a snack and still be hungry. But his eyes…they were warm and comforting. The tremor I felt instantly disappeared as his dark brown eyes met mine.

"You're a werewolf." I blurted out. I mentally slapped myself. He just chuckled.

"Yes," he laughed. "Yes, I am. But I believe you now owe me an introduction of yourself?" I blushed. Why would someone of his stature want to know my name? I was just a servant like the others.

"Bella, my lord. My name is Bella and I am a servant here." He nodded.

"I am more than pleased to have met you, Bella. And please, call me Jacob." I was about to protest until the memory of Alice telling me to call her Alice.

"If you wish, Jacob." I said to the ground. He smiled.

"Well we wouldn't want you to freeze out here. Let me lead you back inside." I took his offer.

As we headed back, I noticed a few men sitting outside. I wouldn't have seen them if it hadn't have been for the lit embers burning from the cigarettes they were smoking.

**(They smoked back then right? If not, we'll pretend they did. Lol. I told you I have no clue about those times, so just go along with me =D)**

The quiet conversation amongst them had stilled. One of the men stood. I turned forward to save Jacob the struggle of keeping me on my feet. He laughed when I tripped, but easily caught me before I fell. His hand never left the small of my back after that.

Once we reached the doors to the kitchens, I looked behind me and noticed the man who had stood was following Jacob and me.

"I hope to see you again soon, Bella." With that and a big smile, he left me. I turned around to the shadows of the opened doorway.

"Hello, Edward." I greeted. He said nothing. He was leaning against the door frame in all his godly glory. I forced myself to look away and continued to walk into the kitchen. Edward caught my arm and turned me to him.

"Do you know who he is?" He asked. His voice wasn't one of curiosity, but one of a warning.

"Who? Jacob? Oh yes. He was kind enough to walk me back." Silence.

"You know he's a werewolf right? They are extremely dangerous, Bella. You shouldn't be alone with one. Especially _that _one." He said, disgusted. His tone caught me off guard. I tore my arm away from Edward's grasp.

"It's not your place to tell me who I should be alone with or not. Jacob Black is a fine gentleman." Edward's eyes darted to Jacob, who was now drinking wine and talking to whom I assumed was his father.

"I'm just warning you, Bella. Not everyone here is as good as you'd like them to be." And with that sour note, he went back outside.

I wasn't sure if I was more irritated or flattered. I just sneaked another glass of wine and drank it dry. It wasn't like I was the only one drinking. In fact, half the workers couldn't walk straight.

My head was beginning to get a little fuzzy, so I decided it was time to stop. I stood at the edge of the ballroom and watched as bodies twirled and listened to the noise of fun. I wished one day that I could participate. As I looked around, my eyes stopped on a man standing diagonal of me. He was average looking. He didn't have any special features like Edward or Jacob. I saw a blonde older woman walk up to him along with a very skinny man with a mustache. It looked like his parents seeing as they shared many of the same attributes. I was about to walk off when someone slammed into me.

"Bella! You have to come with us!" Lucia half yelled. Her speech was slurred and I could tell she had a little more wine than I.

"I've got to finish helping out, Lucia. You go ahead."

"Ok! But don't forget about tonight!" She said then left with the other two drunken girls with her.

After ever ball, the servants would all have a little party of their own. Angela informed me of this. She said they were always interesting to be around. I wasn't sure if that was a good thing or not. I wasn't really one for large crowds, but I decided I would go. It might not be so bad.

Many hours passed. It was near black outside and guests started leaving. Jacob came up to me as I heading to the party room to start cleaning up.

"Bella! I'm surprised to have found you so easily! I thought for sure you'd be buried in the depths of the kitchen heat," he smiled. "I just wanted to wish you a good night. I hope to see you again in the near future." With that, and a gentle kiss on the hand, he left.

My skin stayed a light shade of pink as Jacob made his departure with his father and two girls whom I recognized as his sisters.

Everyone had left just a few moments later and we were all left to clean up. Carlisle and his wife Esme thanked us for helping with Esme's ball. She said it was exquisite and that it topped last year's. They walked up the huge staircases.

It didn't take too long to clean seeing as we had been picking things up throughout the ball. Finally we were finished.

"Hey Bella!" Angela greeted. We locked arms and went outside with the others.

I noticed there was some wine left over, but of course it would not go to waste.

"Angela? Are we going to get any sleep tonight?" I laughed.

"Not much." She smiled. "Don't worry Bella. It'll be fun."

There were logs spread everywhere as well as benches that had been stolen from other places throughout the glorious back yard.

"Cheers to us! Who put these son of a bitches together!" A drunk server shouted. He was standing on one of the wooden tables. He opened the wine bottle and took a swig. Then it was passed around. There weren't many glasses, just tons of wine bottles being passed around.

Servants were stumbling everywhere talking, laughing, and going off into the woods. Of course the yard was lit with lanterns strung out across the trees and clothing lines.

We all gathered around a bon fire that had been made. I saw Edward and Emmett and tugged Angela in their direction. We stumbled and tripped over to the gorgeous males. I plopped right down next to Edward. He jumped.

"Bella!" He yelled. I was squeezed between Angela and Edward. I started laughing and I tried to stop, but couldn't. He had a wine bottle to himself and took a large gulp from it.

"Don't be greedy!" I grabbed it from his hands and drank what was left.

"Bella! You finished the damn thing!" He slurred. That started a whole new laughing fit. He and Angela joined me. I saw Emmett lean over in our direction and he started to flirt with Angela. It was a sad sight to see. Two drunks trying desperately to stay vertical flirting with each other.

I laughed so hard tears filled my eyes and I tipped over into Edward's lap. He continued laughing.

"Bel-bel-Bella," he chuckled. "Let's go." I had no clue what he just said, but I got up from his lap and together we managed to stand up right. We stumbled off from the bon fire and headed into the dark woods that were faintly lit by the overcasts of the lanterns. There were voices coming from all directions and from the random laughter and moans I knew they weren't paying attention to their surroundings.

**(The Naughty Song is fun to listen to for this part. Riot by three days grace adds nicely to the mood too. For hotness-Naughty Song. For angrier hotness-Riot. Lol)**We came to a stop by a tree and that's when I noticed our closeness. His body was heaving as was mine. I looked in his eyes and saw lust. Pure lust. My mind clouded over. I couldn't stop the few giggles that kept bubbling out of me every few seconds. He just smiled and chuckled at me.

"I love you Bella." It sounded more like 'I luh u bla" Then his head dropped to my shoulder. A giggle slipped once again.

"I luh ya tt Ewrd!" Translation: I love you too Edward. I felt his lips kiss my neck. I leaned my head back and moaned at the sensation. He kissed a trail from my neck, to the other side of my neck, to my cheek, to my lips. As soon as his lips met mine, I grabbed a fistful of his hair and kissed him with all my strength. Our tongues collided and it felt wonderful. I stroked his tongue with my own. He put a hand on the back of my neck while the other rubbed my waist to shoulder over and over.

The kiss got more passionate and he backed me up against a tree.

"Mmm. Edward." I moaned. He licked my neck. I groaned at the feeling of his tongue being glided across my collar bone. My hands mused his hair and ran over his chest. It was a messy passion.

My shirt slipped from my shoulder and Edward took advantage of the newly exposed skin. My eye lids went heavy and when I felt his teeth sink into my shoulder it created an all new high. My head bent forward and met his neck. I bit him back, hard. It was his turn to moan my name. I sucked on the spot gently to replace the pain with pleasure. I could feel his lower half start to grind with mine.

"Bella, I want you so badly." He whispered in my ear. His cool breath slid across my skin and made me shiver. I pulled his lips to me and kissed with as much fervor as I could. I lifted my leg around his waist and he gladly accepted the gesture. His hand started trailing his hand up my thigh. He rested it on my bare hip.

"Bella! There you are!" We froze. Our eyes met and next thing I know, I'm flattening out my raggy dress and he's coming his fingers through his messy hair.

Lucia's form became visible as she tripped her way over to me. She grabbed my hand, not even acknowledging Edward's presence, and dragged me with her. Edward didn't follow us, but stayed back.

If I thought my head was fuzzy before, it was nothing compared to now. I was completely and totally disoriented.

We broke through the edge of the forest and were met by the fire surrounded by my friends and coworkers. Angela was passed out on Emmett's shoulder. Lucia and I walked over to them with half closed eyes and barely coherent mumblings.

"Bells, where's little Eddie?" He asked. Clearly he had a high tolerance for alcohol. He didn't seem even a little fazed.

"His back n th frest." Emmett laughed, but nodded.

"Has he passed out yet?" I was in no state to fully comprehend what he said so I just absent mindedly shook my head no. He laughed at me again and ruffled my hair.

"Get some sleep kid." And he went to retrieve my little Eddie, as Emmett had referred to him as.

Lucia and I did our very best to drag Angela back to our room. Luckily, there were no stairs to climb. We dropped her on her bed, literally dropped her, and went to our own.

I was too tired to change into my nightgown or get under the covers so I threw myself on my bed and let the darkness consume me.

**So? How was it? Reviews! They make me happy guys! Thanks!**


	8. Never Said I Was Sorry

**Katie-Ann-Cullen, you're a sweetheart! Thanks for all the alerts! And of course, the review :) **

**Ok, this chapter is a little shorter. I try to make them as long as I can, but sometimes it doesn't run together as nicely. So leave reviews and I'll get next chapter up sooner. **

**Chapter 7: I Never Said I Was Sorry**

My eyes opened to a dark room. I could faintly hear movement in the room next to us. I looked over to see a pool of drool by Angela's mouth. I chuckled to myself. My head still felt a little cloudy and I knew what was necessary to clear my mind if I wanted to be able to work today. We hadn't gotten to bed until the early early hours of the morning. From the slow paces outside the door I could tell there was still more time before we headed to our duties.

I shuffled out of the room and made my way to the restrooms down the hall. The few others I saw looked like zombies. Their eyes were half closed, backs slumped, and arms swinging back and forth. I would have laughed if I hadn't looked like that myself.

I went to one of the neat stalls and bent over.

**(I'm sorry but the thought of no indoor plumbing is just…ew. So we're just going to tell ourselves that the Cullens are just amazingly rich and hey, if the Romans had indoor plumbing, the Cullens can too!)**

After ridding myself of any alcohol or food my body contained, I washed my face and slumped back to the bedroom.

I walked in to see a disheveled Lucia. She was sitting on her bed with severely wrinkled clothes and her hair rivaled a bird's nest. She looked at me, grumbled, then fell back on her bed. I shut the door behind me and continued back to bed.

"Time to get up ladies!" A voice yelled from the other side of the door. It sounded like Mimi. I groaned.

Angela didn't budge, but Lucia got in a fight with her pillow. I laughed and walked over to Angela's bed.

"Angela, you must get up now." I gently shook her shoulder. Her eyes slowly opened.

"Huh?" It took her a moment to process everything, but once she did, she wiped her mouth of any liquid as I tried not to laugh. Angela managed to get out of bed and tried going to the restrooms. I'm sure they were probably very busy right now. There was at least one person in there throughout the night. I wasn't sure about the guys though. They seemed to be more alcohol tolerant than the women. Of course I was only fifteen, so it just took a few swigs to get my head out of the country.

"Lucia, come on love. We've got to get going." My voice sounded dry and cracked. I needed water. After a few minutes of lying with her butt in the air, she got up. We changed when Angela returned.

I was glad the Cullens didn't eat. Not many of the servants were hungry and they only ate a very little. There's was a lot of hot teas and coffees and water being passed around as we all calmed our bodies from the hangovers, as I've heard some people refer to this pain as. I wasn't feeling too sick. In fact, after I ate a piece of bread and drank some water, I felt alright. Still a little woozy, but not too bad.

A bell rang.

Now that I had learned what it meant, I went straight to the awaiting meeting. I sat myself by a girl I knew as Jessica. She was a nice girl. Well, not exactly nice, but she was friendly enough. Carlisle and Esme made their descent down the stairs, both looking absolutely stunning as usual.

"My wife and I would just like to thank you again for all the work you all did to make last night fun for everyone. There were many compliments," Carlisle smiled. "And to thank you for all the work you have done over the past few weeks, we would like to give you the day off. Roam as you please. Just remember you must be present for work tomorrow." He said.

The day off! I heard a few people mumble they were going back to bed. I didn't want to go back to bed. I had heard a few girls talking the other day about a town not too far from here and decided I'd ask someone to show me the way.

The meeting was dismissed and everyone scattered. I saw Lucia drag herself back to the sleeping quarters. So I looked for Angela. I turned around and ran smack into a hard surface that almost felt like a wall. I shook the dizziness from my head. Then there was a booming laugh and strong hands that grabbed my arms before I fell back.

"Hey squirt! I see you're alive this morning!" Said the booming voice.

"Hi Emmett." I greeted groggily. "Have you seen Angela?"

"Actually I just did. I saw her just a minute ago with that Ben guy." There wasn't the slightest tone of jealousy or uneasiness. Obviously he didn't like Angela like I had assumed. I knew for a fact he didn't like Lucia. Big lug just flirted with everyone.

"Oh. Did they leave?" He nodded. "Oh darn! I was hoping she could show me to that village everyone keeps talking about."

"Oh yeah. Everyone who's not going to bed is going there. Come on. I'll walk you. Eddie's on his way there too!" He put an arm around my waist and dragged me forward. I say dragged because my feet weren't exactly working at the speed his was.

"It's just a few miles straight." He said as we walked around to the front 'yard'. It was beautiful. There was a mini garden on each side of the humongous front doors. Along with ivy creeping up the walls. There was a little stone path to the door as well.

On our walk to the town, we passed many others we worked with. We never caught up to Angela and Ben, or they never caught up to us. I wasn't sure which one.

The sun was almost directly over head, signaling noon. The forest got gradually thinner and finally we reached the small town. There were people everywhere! A couple of horses were there, but walking was the main source of transportation unless you were traveling a far distance. If you were rich, a carriage took you. But there would certainly be no carriages here unless they were just passing through.

I looked around at all the shops and carts. I recognized the place. My father worked here. Perhaps I'd see him! Just the thought of seeing him excited me.

"Uh…Bella, I've got to go do something really quick. I'll be around and so will half of the other workers, so if you need anything find one of them first. I'm sorry to leave you here, but I uh…I told someone I'd help them uh…do something! Have fun looking around!" And with that, Emmett left me. I wasn't too bothered. I knew this place.

I started wondering around amongst all the different shops. I saw Angela, Jessica, and Ben in a candy store and decided to join them. Ben noticed me walking in first.

"Hello Bella." He smiled. I liked Ben. He was very quiet but friendly. Just like Angela. The more you get to know them, the more they talked around you.

"Oh hey Bella! I didn't see you there." Jessica greeted. Jessica wasn't exactly my best friend, but she never gave me a reason to not like her. Other than the girl never stops gossiping, she was ok.

Angela smiled warmly at me. "Hey Bella, we were looking at the candy, want some?" I looked at the array of candies and chocolates. They all looked pleasing to the eye, but I didn't think I should spend what little money I had on that.

"No thanks. I was just kind of roaming around."

"I think Ben and I are just going to stay here for a little while, maybe walk around ourselves." She looked at me with hopeful eyes. I nodded slightly, telling her I got the hint. She smiled big at me.

"Hey Jess, would you like to accompany me? I have only been here once or twice and don't really know my way around." That was a lie. I'd been here more than that. Not enough for the clerks to know me, but enough to know my way around.

"Sure. We'll see you two later." Jessica locked my arm in hers and we left the store.

"So how have you been Bella? Adjusting well?" She asked. Jessica was one of those people that had to befriend every new person.

"I've been doing well. It hasn't been too difficult adjusting." I returned her smile. Just then, her eyes went wide and I thought I saw her cheeks grow a little pink. I followed her gaze and sighed.

James and Shane were walking in clear view ahead of us. As soon as I saw them, they of course saw me. Jessica tried to give them a flirty look, but I thought she looked a little scary as she batted her eyes.

"Bella." Shane smiled as they passed. James nodded at me and winked. I spared a glance at Jessica. Her bottom jaw had dropped and her eyes were wide. She then arranged her expression to a calm and snobbish one.

"Ugh. They're so immature. They have to go after every new piece of meat." She said. I was a little offended that she had referred to me as a piece of meat, but I didn't let it get me.

"I agree."

We walked in a few stores and stopped at a few carts. I could tell Jessica was getting a little irritated with me since I refused to actually buy anything. It was now dusk and people started heading back to the Cullens'.

"We should go." Jessica said. She sounded flat and tired. I knew she just wanted to get away from my lack of enthusiasm so I just agreed and we started walking back towards the gradually thicker woods. I was a little upset that I didn't get to see my father, but I figured he took the day off for my mother.

We made it to the edge of the trees and were bombarded by a nasally voice.

"Jess! Wait up!" She ran over to us and gave me a quick look up and down. Her nose wrinkled.

"Oh. Hello Bella." She said a little too formally. Jessica launched into a conversation with Lauren and latched her other arm in Lauren's. I just walked along and said nothing. I knew Lauren didn't like me. If she did, she sure could have fooled me! The girl never said one word to me, but always gave me these looks that said 'I'm better than you.' It didn't faze me. I just kept my distance from her unless I needed something.

Lauren was also one of the women in charge in the kitchens. I wasn't quite sure why. She wasn't really in charge, but she helped look out for the work being done. I didn't want to annoy her any further in case she ended up assigning me a ridiculous amount of chores.

The night crept on us slowly and I was instantly glad I wasn't alone. Even with the presence of Jessica and Lauren. I couldn't imagine being alone in these woods at night. It was scary. But the company was nice. Their meaningless conversing soothed my nerves. Yes their voices were an octave too high, but the noise other than the eerie silence was welcomed.

"Well, we're here. Lauren and I are going to our room, Bella. We'll see you tomorrow." And they left. We hadn't even gotten inside and they already left me. At least I was in the comfort of the back yard. I took a seat on the bench nearby. I put my head on the cool wood and let out a deep breath. A few minutes passed and I felt a presence. I looked up and saw two figures, one was very large. Emmett and Edward I guessed. They were laughing at something then noticed me staring.

"Bella? Is that you?" Edward asked.

"Yep. It's me." The two started whispering back and forth. I thought I heard something like 'take it' and 'jackass'. I chuckled.

Emmett waved at me like a goof and went inside. Edward made his way over to me.

It was too dark to see anything except his outline. But the closer he got, the more I could make out. He didn't sit by me, just stood…in all his godly glory…*sigh*

Then I remembered last night….or this morning…. whenever it happened, I remembered. The kissing, the touching, the moaning, it all came back to me. I gasped and my cheeks got increasingly hot the more the memory came back to me.

"Are you ok?" Edward asked full of concern. Hell, I'd just went from laughing, to sighing, to gasping, to blushing. I'd be curious too.

I chewed on my bottom lip and nodded. He laughed nervously and rubbed the back of his neck. _Here Edward, let me do it. I can make you feel better. _

Bella! Stop it!

"So…I just wanted to uh….apologize for l-last night. I kind of uh…got a little out of hand… It's just that…you're so beautiful and you didn't stop me and I was drunk and I couldn't think straight! Please don't hate me or think I'm a complete jerk! I-" I put a hand over his mouth to stop his rambling.

"Edward. Hush." I giggled. Oh goodness. I seem to be doing that increasingly lately. "Don't be sorry." _I'm certainly not._

"I never said I was sorry." He smirked. I blushed, again. Actually my blush never went away and the red just added on to what was already there. "I just wish it didn't take wine for us to have that kind of courage…" He trailed off.

"Well we should go in before one of us gets sick from the cold." I took his hand and stood. He had been closer than I though. So when our chests brushed and he held me there, I couldn't help but inhale sharply.

He captured my eyes and our lids both started to close. I felt his soft luxurious lips barely touch mine. It was like I was made of glass and he would break me.

Gradually, the pressure intensified. I felt the slightest wet warmth of his tongue make contact with my bottom lip and I allowed him access. Our tongues touched tentatively. Not at all like our drunken session the previous night. This was more loving and much more gentle.

The shy kiss ended. Our foreheads fell into each other. We smiled and looked in each other's eyes. His eyes sparkled like the bright deep emerald they were.

He intertwined our fingers and we walked inside. As soon as we slid the glass kitchen door shut, there was a cold hand on my shoulder.

"Bella." A beautiful voice said softly. It sounded like bells. "Bella, come with me." I turned around and saw Alice Cullen looking sorry….for me.

**Ok, so I'm getting more story alerts than reviews....That's not cool. I love getting added to alerts, don't get me wrong!! I love it and it gets me all teary eyed, lol. But reviews are nice to read. It helps me know if I'm on the right track or not. And I'm always open for suggestions. **

**THANKS FOR THE FEW OF YOU WHO GAVE ME SUGGESTIONS! I ACTUALLY HAVE THE PERFECT PLANS FOR THEM!! THEY FIT WHERE I WANT TO GO WITH THIS! IT WON'T BE UNTIL LATER THAT I USE THEM, BUT THEY WILL BE USED AND YOU WILL GET THE CREDIT FOR GIVING THE IDEAS TO ME! LUV YOU GUYS!**


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